Is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome in Older Patients a different disease? – a clinical cohort study

Background: Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a disabling disorder characterised by persistent fatigue with a typical age of diagnosis of 35–50 years. CFS does present in those aged over 50 but whether this is a different disease in older age groups has not been considered. Therefore, we performed a clinical cohort study to examine and differentiate the clinical and autonomic features in CFS patients aged over 50.

Design: A total of 179 Fukuda diagnosed CFS patients were recruited, and 25 older CFS patients (50 + years) were matched case by case for gender and length of history to 25 younger CFS patients (16–29 years). A range of symptomatic-based questionnaires were used in addition to heart rate variability and baroreceptor sensitivity to assess autonomic function.

Conclusions: Older CFS patients demonstrate a disease phenotype very different from younger patients. The combination of differing underlying pathogenic mechanisms and the physiological aspects of ageing result in a greater disease impact in older CFS patients.

Is this about CFS another name for ME or about psychiatry messing around

Posted by: simmons1Feb 14, 2013

not to long ago back in the dark ages of my ME childhood children were claimed not to get ME instead school phobia was given as a reason for why children were believing themselves sick or Munchhausen by proxy were the mother was accused of creating ME in the minds of their children by psychiatrists . Now that i am getting older my ME is going to be put down to psychological problems due to old age a totally separate ME from my younger ME version of myself can i trust this research ,is it about old age or ME or is it just another psychological fix up job another spin to make ME the non disease lumped in with some sort of old age psychological theory to damage ME.

I may have jumped to conclusion here as I may have mistaken physiological aspects of aging as psychological aspects of aging I have also discovered that Gavin Spickett works in Immunology in Newcastle and this is an area that has an important part to play in researching ME .I apologize for being Hasty and harsh in my comment here it is very hard to determine what is going on in ME and should have checked my facts it is important that science looks into this illness .